Railway anticreeper



Patented Aug. 31, 1926.

UNITED STATES ATEN'E' liiiiQE.

JACOB B. MCCLEARY, OF CUlvT'BERLATD, MARYLAND, A1\TD WILLAM D. HERSHBERGER,

OF PATTERSONS CREEK,

WEST VIRGINIA.

RALWAY ANTICREEPER.

Application filed January The inventioii relates to devices for use in connection with railway tracks, known in the art as anticreepers, the purpose of which is to prevent the rails from moving lengthwise in the direction of movement of the train.

The object of the present invention is to provide a simple form of anticreeping device, which may be manufactured at small cost, which is readily applied to the trackway and which is positive in its effect, serving to securely lock the rail against creeping, the locking effect increasing as the creeping tendency is increased.

The invention will be more readily understood by reference to the accompanying drawing showing ain illustrative embodiiv ment of the invention.

In the drawings:

Figure 1 is a side view showing a portion of track including the rail and a tie, to which the improved anticreeper is applied.

Figure 2 is a sectional view through a rail to which the anticreeper is a plied, the anticreeper being shown in en elevation.

Referring to the drawing, the reference numeral denotes a portion of a rail which has a tendency to creep to the left in the direction of the arrow. The rail 10 is secured to the tie 11 by means of the usual spikes 12.

In order to firmly lock the rail to the tie and to prevent creeping the improved anticreeping device is applied to the rail adjacent each tie and on the side of the tie from which the creeping force is exerted. If in any case the rail has a tendency to creep in both directions under diiferent forces one of the anticreepers should be supplied at each side of the tie.

As shown', the anticreeper consists of an underlying member 13 which fits under the rail and is provided at one end with afiange 14 against which one edge of the lower base 15 of the rail is adapted to iit, a hook shaped projection 16 being provided at its other end in order to lit over base 17 of the rail.

Extending at an angle from the base portion 13 of the anticreeper, and intermediate. the flange 14 and the hook 16, is an arm 18 at the outer end of which is an enlarged tie engaging portion 19. The portion 19 is con vexl curved in the direction which faces vertical side 20 the tie 11 and the arm 18 is, 192e. serial no. 82,004.

may be curved to correspond roughly with the curvature of the tie engaging portion.

The tie engaging portion 19 may be formed integral with the arm 18 or it may be lformed by welding or otherwise securing thereto a pair of wing portions 21 which serve to give a greater tie engaging surface.

in assembling, the hook of the anticreeper is slipped onto the base of the rail before the rail is laid, the lug 14 fitting against the other side of the base. The anticreeper is then slid to the proper position adjacent one of the ties and therail laid in place. The anticreeper is so placed that the member 19 engages the vertical side of the tie. The hook 16 and the lug 14k engage the base of the rail sufliciently tightly to prevent their accidental removal. n

The operation of the device will be evident from the foregoing description. When a force is applied to the rail 10 which would tend to move it in the direction of the arrow the tie engaging portion 19 of the anticreeper is forced hard against the vertical side 20 of the tie 11. By reason of the curved surface of this member the entire anticreeper is moved from the dotted position shown in Figure 1 to the full line position. This causes the rail engaging portion of the anticreeper to bite the base of the rail and thereby lock the same against movement in the direction of the arrow. 1t will be seen that the greater the force applied to the rail tending to cause it to creep in the direction of the arrow the greater will be the torsion grip action of the tie engaging member, which will be transmitted with increased force by reason of the leverage afforded by the arm 18, to the rail engaging member, so that the locking action is proportional to the force tending' to cause creeping.

The invention has been described in detail for the purpose of illustration, but it will be evident that variations may be resorted to within the scope of the appended claims.

llVhat we claim is 1. In combination with a rail and tie, an anticreeping device adapted to be applied to the rail on the side of the tie from which a creeping force is exerted, said device comprising a flat horizontally extending railgrippinp; portion adapted to underlie the rail` said gripping portieri having a fiange and a heelashaped .member at the ends' theren of adapted to engage the base of the rail, and an integral arm intermediate the flange and the hook, extending directly forwardly and downwardly from said rail gripping portion, said arm being provided with an enlarged convexly curved `tie-engaging portion adapted to engage the Vertical side of ytheV adjacent tie when a creeping Jforce is applied to the rail, whereby a torsion grip is pro.- duced tending to rotate said antlcreeper Yabout a -horizontalaxis to thereby lock theV rail-engaging member to the rail with a force which increases with the creeping force; Y

'2. A one-piece railway antiereeper coinyprising a rail-gripping portion adapted to a rail-engaging hook at thev larged tie-engaging portion, convexly curved toward the Vertical side of the adj acent tie, and adapted to cause the antiereeper to rotate about a horizontal axis to exert a torsion grip, tending to increase the locking action of thev rail-gripping member as the creeping tendency of the rail is increased.

3. A one-piece railway antiereeper cornprising a rail-gripping portion adapted to underlie the rail and secured at its ends to the baseoie` the rail, an integral arn'i intermediate the ends of said rail-gripping ineinber, extending directly forwardly, and at an angle downwardly from said rail-grippingportion, said arm terminating in a tie engaging portion, adapted to cause the anticreeper to rotate about a horizontal axis to exert a torsion grip tending to `increase the locking action of the rail-gripping ineinber as the creeping tendency' of therail is increased. c

' JACOB B. MGGLEARY.

TILLIAM D.l HERSI-IBERGER. 

